Donald Trump
Donald TrumpReuters

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump on Friday linked North Korea’s latest nuclear test with what he said were the failures of his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton.

A spokesman for Trump quoted by Reuters said that North Korea's latest test, which its neighbor South Korea said was the “largest ever”, was an example of the "catastrophic failures" of Clinton.

"Hillary Clinton's North Korean policy is just one more calamitous diplomatic failure from a failed Secretary of State," Trump campaign spokesman Jason Miller said in the statement.

“Clinton promised to work to end North Korea’s nuclear program as Secretary of State, yet the program has only grown in strength and sophistication,” the statement added.

Separately on Friday, Clinton condemned the test which she said was “outrageous and unacceptable”.

“I support President Obama’s call to both strengthen the sanctions passed earlier this year with the United Nations and to impose additional sanctions. At the same time, we must strengthen defense cooperation with our allies in the region; South Korea and Japan are critical to our missile defense system, which will protect us against a North Korean missile. China plays a critical role, too, and must meaningfully increase pressure on North Korea – and we must make sure they do,” said a statement from Clinton’s campaign.

“This is another reminder that America must elect a President who can confront the threats we face with steadiness and strength. We need a Commander-in-Chief committed to a bipartisan foreign policy, who can bring together top experts with deep experience to solve the toughest challenges. And we need a President committed to reducing – not increasing – the number of nuclear weapons and nuclear states in the world. More countries with nuclear weapons in Northeast Asia would increase the chances of the unthinkable happening. We cannot take that risk,” the statement added.

Obama condemned the nuclear test earlier on Friday, calling it a “grave threat” to regional security and international stability and vowing to take “additional significant steps” against the isolated North Korea.

Israel issued a condemnation of the North Korean test as well, with the Foreign Ministry saying it “contradicts international norms and Security Council resolutions.”

“The nuclear test, and the ballistic missile tests that preceded it, necessitate concrete action by the international community against the proliferation to the Middle East carried out by North Korea in a variety of spheres,” said the Israeli Foreign Ministry.

(Arutz Sheva’s North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)